Better Choices
by only-mj
Summary: After the theft of his first Duel Runner, Yusei is forced to make a tough decision when it comes to affording the parts for to build a new one. This leads him down a less than desirable path, but he knows he'll have to live with these decisions no matter what the outcome. Pre-Series. Implied Kingcrabshipping.


"Two hundred dollars?!" I scoffed, folding my arms over my chest. "The speed sensor you sold me two weeks was only seventy-five!" I argued back, glaring at the mechanic before me. "And you and I both know that was marked up from it's actual value."

The man gave me a chuckle, leaning back in his chair and taking the sensor literally off the table between us. "You need to learn a little somethin' 'bout supply and demand, Yusei." He grinned, resting his muddy boots on the table with a loud thud. "These things are hard to come by in Satellite. That makes it pretty valuable." I rolled my eyes and I'm sure he saw because his smile quickly disappeared and he shot me a glare. "Besides, what the fuck happened to the one I already sold ya?"

I drummed my fingers across my arms nervously. I studied the miscellaneous parts and tools on peg boards and shelves against his work shop's walls. 'Sector Security would have a field day raiding his place,' I think. Ever since the Daedalus Bridge Incident, even owning the pieces to build a runner was enough to get you thrown into The Facility. "It… It got stolen…" I finally admitted softly. I did not find sense in lying to the man I was trying to make a deal with. Not at the time anyway.

I tried not to jump when he slammed his boots back down on the ground. Beating a fist onto the table as he yelled at me. "Stolen! I told you before I only sell to people who are careful! You wanna get me in trouble? You realize if I get shipped off then all your connections to parts go with me!"

"It wasn't my fault." I argued back. "I finished the runner I was building… And someone… " I muttered before trailing off, trying to block out the images of it riding off from my mind.

"You let someone ride off on your runner? You're an even dumber shit than I thought!"

"I know where it is!" I continued, raising my voice. "And I promise can't be traced back to any of us!"

"Then if you know where it is then why don't you just go get it back, boy?" He growled. I could tell he was growing impatient with me, still I was not done negotiating just yet.

I swallowed, debating on whether on not to continue. "Because it's in New Domino City…"

I can't say I was surprised when he laughs. "Okay… Sure it is, kiddo. And I'm having Yugi Mutou over for dinner tonight." His laughter filled the work shop.

I rose to my feet, slamming my palms down on the table. I did not have time for all of his bullshit, and I sure as hell had not come all that way to be laughed at. "Believe whatever you want, but that's where it is. I need the parts to build a new runner so I can get my old one back. I will give you seventy-five for the speed sensor, or I will take my business else-where." I warned seriously, challenging his eyes with my own.

His eyes narrowed to a glare. He gave one final small chuckle before rising to his feet as well. He was easily a foot taller than me, but I stood my ground and stared him down. "You like to run that mouth a lot…" He muttered. "My price was not for negotiating." He responded seriously. "But you seem awfully desperate, so I'm willing to cut you a deal…" He grinned, leaning forward until he's on my level. "I'll give you the sensor for seventy-five _and…_ " He paused, taking my chin in his hand. "You put that mouth'a yours 'round my cock and put it to good use."

Horrified, I immediately pulled away from him, slapping his hand away. "I'm not gonna suck you off!" I snapped. "Fuck you." I muttered as I turned to leave.

He shrugged with a feigned nonchalance. "Suit yourself. You're more than welcome to take your price somewhere else. But…" I dared to look over my shoulder as I could hear him laughing once more. He held up the speed sensor with a wide grin, waiving it in front of me. "I think you'll find this is the last one in Satellite. Unless ya wanna wait for someone t'dig one up. But it sounded like you were in a hurry."

I turned away from him once more. My face felt hot as I looked around the small work shop once more for any other option. The truth was, I had been all over Satellite looking for another. He was not bluffing when he said he had the last one in town. I let out a sigh. I did not want to. _God I did not want to_ , but it was not like I had many options to choose from. "Plus the deck holster." I muttered, pointing to the holster on the wall.

"Fine." He grinned, sitting back down in his chair. "I'll throw in the deck holster, too." He patted his lap and I felt sick to my stomach. "But you'd better swallow, Yusei." I took a deep breath, walking around the table to his side. His smile never faltered as I gave him a glare. I dropped down to my knees between his legs. "That's it…" He breathed out as I undid the front of his jeans. My eyes slid shut as I pulled him out of the cloth. I could get through this. I did my best to imagine someone else. Anyone else, really. He grabbed a fist of my dark hair and pulled roughly. I let out a growl as I took as much as I could down my throat. He let out a deep moan and muttered, "Oh, you've done this before…" I kept my eyes shut, refusing to look at him as I continued to work. He was right, this was not my first time sucking someone off. I did my best to make this go as quickly as possible. I ran my tongue along the underside of his cock. I pretend that the moans he's making belong to someone else. I pretend that the hands in my hair aren't his. He lets out a muffled cry as he releases his load down my throat. I instinctively pulled back and he pulled my face closer to his body, forcing me to swallow. He releases me, shoving me back onto the floor.

I let out a cough, wiping his cum off my lips. I rose to my feet and held out my hand expectedly, not saying anything.

He gave me a wide smile, his eyes hazed over. Deciding he was done with me, he threw the sensor at me. "Now get your shit and get out…"

It would be dishonest to pretend that it did not happen again. It would be even more dishonest of me to act like it did not get easier every time I was asked to do it. In a world like The Satellite, things had more value than currency. In a community that still utilized a bartering system, I quickly learned what my assets were and what I was willing to trade for what I needed. Everything had a price, and I soon learned what mine was. It was easy selling yourself when you had nothing left to lose.

I also learned that sometimes it was better to be dishonest.

Like when Crow learned that Jack and the runner were gone. The way he rushed over to my hideout with my favorite food in tow. A sad look in his eyes as he apologized as though he had been responsible in some way. We sat on the couch and ate in silence. He quietly asked me how I was doing and I muttered that I was doing just fine. We both knew that I had been lying, but he did not pry and instead quickly changed the subject to admire the new runner that I am positive he was suspicious of.

Like when Rally's eyes lit up when they saw how much progress we had made on the new runner. They exclaimed in awe about how quickly the progress was coming along the second time around. I forced myself to smile as they complimented me on how good it looked. When they asked how I had afforded the new hologram projector, I simply shrugged and told them I had been saving up.

Like when I developed a sore throat that I could not shake. After the doctor ran his tests and gave me pills I had been dreading to receive, I swore to him and Martha that I had no idea what had happened. Martha gave me a worried look as I promised the doctor that I would send my nonexistent boyfriend his way. She pulled me aside before I could leave and made me promise to be more careful.

'Be more careful' to her had meant stop what I was doing and go back to collecting spare parts the old fashioned way. 'Be more careful' to me meant don't get caught and choose the people I was doing business with more wisely.

As though getting caught was a legitimate fear that I had. As long as you did not have a Duel Disk or were blatantly showing off your parts for a runner, Sector Security did not seem to care about us living in The Satellite.

"Awfully late to be out and about, isn't it?" A Security officer asked suspiciously, pulling up beside me one night as I limped down the sidewalk, bag of engine parts, slung over my shoulder.

I had seen this one before quite a few times. I wondered what I had done to get on his list. "Just tryin' to get home, Officer Trudge." I muttered, keeping my eyes off of him.

Putting the stand down on his runner, I could tell he was studying me through his helmet. He and I both knew that he had no reason to stop me. I just had to be careful not to give him a reason to search me. "Where're ya comin' from, Satellite?" He asked with a deep, gruff voice.

I knew I was a mess, the way I limped down the street with someone else's cum on my shirt and my hair in more of a mess than usual. He did not have to remind me. I sighed. "Just trying to get home from my boyfriend's." I stated bluntly. "All I want to do is go home and take a shower." I turned to face him, motioning to my messy state. "Is that a crime, Officer?"

I gave a small smile as he became uncomfortable with my blunt answer. He quickly recovered as he asked what I had in my bag.

"Clothes and shit." I responded quickly. The longer he interrogated me, the more I was sure he was going to figure me out. "Look. My boyfriend just kicked me out and I really just wanna go back to my mom's house and go to bed, alright?" I shook my head and continued to walk home.

I could hear him calling to me. Something about staying safe and it not being safe to wander the streets to late at night. I scoffed as though he knew anything about how unsafe us Satellites could be.

It was not long before I earned a reputation. As soon as I heard someone ask if I was the guy who gave head for Duel Runner parts, I knew I had made a terrible mistake. It was then I realized I was too deep in to just walk away.

"So… You need a Duel Disk?" He asked with a grin.

I sighed, we both knew how this would end, I just wished he would get on with it. "Yeah. I hear you got one in pretty good condition."

He nodded, leaning back in his chair. "Depends on who's asking." He tilted his head to the side, giving me a long hard look. "And ain't you one of those kids that was destroying these back in the day?"

My eyes slid shut, I should have known that would come back to bite me. It should not have been surprising that destroying Duel Disks had only made their value go up, and their price pretty steep. I nodded. "Yeah that was my group." I admitted. I was not about to denounce something I had done in the past, especially when it had been something I had believed in so strongly.

Lucky for me, he took this news as good news. His smile grew wider as he laughed to his lackeys. "Do you hear that, boys? One of The Enforcers needs to buy a Duel Disk!" He cackled as the other men around us did so as well on cue. "I outta thank you, ya know. You and your boys really made my business what it is today. Really made my stock prices go up. All of this…" He motioned to his warehouse of parts and dueling supplies. "All cause'a you guys."

I gave him a forced smile. "Glad we could help." I responded in good nature, hoping that would mean I could get a good deal from him.

Unfortunately, he had other ideas for me that night. "I understand you offer certain… services for equipment." He said with a wink.

I swallowed. "I-I also brought money. Or—"

"I don't care about your money!" He roared and his voice echoed off the walls of the warehouse. His employees all turned to give me a smile, as though they had known this was coming from the start. "I've done my research on you, ya know." He started, rising to his feet to approached me. "As I'm sure you did to me before coming here." I gave a wary nod as he stood before me. "Yusei Fudo… You were in that gang that grew my business… You're looking to build a Duel Runner because your first one got stolen by Jack Atlas who is apparently some big hot shot in New Domino City now…" He chuckled when I averted my eyes from him. "I hear you're very good with your mouth…" He grinned, grabbing my face and turning it back to meet his. "And… Rumor has it that you learned how to fuck from our Satellite Champion, Atlas himself." I could feel my face heat up at the implication. I tried to turn away again but he held me in place. "So… For your precious Duel Disk… I'd like to give you a ride myself." He dropped his voice low. I could feel his breath hot on the side of my face. "I mean… if you're good enough for Atlas… You're good enough for me then, right?" I slapped his hand away from me, pulling further away from him.

I hated how obsessed everyone was with him. Everywhere I turned I saw him. It happened right after he had left, and it had been getting worse ever since New Domino City had named him their New Champion. "Fine." What did it matter to anyone else what I did? If Jack could make it to The City on his terms, no matter how twisted. Then I could make it there on mine. "Fine. Two Duel Disks. And you can do whatever you want with me." I said as I made my terms. "But don't mention Atlas. And don't cum inside me." I demanded. He did not negotiate or argue my terms as he pulled me into his arms, biting down on my neck before I had a chance to prepare myself.

It got easier as time went on. Over the years I had taught myself how to block the less than desirable acts. I became very good at imagining others in place of my business partners. I could imagine anyone else, any past lover that I had had was better than these strangers. Except one.

Other than that first blow job I gave in that dirty work shop, I could not let myself imagine him. It was far too painful. I wanted so badly to feel his hands on me once more instead of these strangers'. But every time I tried to imagine him, all I could see was him driving away.

That night was different. Despite my demands to not mention _his_ name, that seemed to be all my night partner could talk about. I knelt down on my hands and knees on the cold warehouse floor completely turned off to the man driving into me and his lackeys staring at us. I tried to block out his voice as he mumbled on. "I bet Atlas never fucked you this hard…" He moaned, digging his nails into my hips.

I ducked my head down and squeezed my eyes shut. The last thing I wanted was to imagine _him_ … "I… Told you not to—"

I was cut off by a loud crash of the door coming down and the loud authoritative cry of: "Sector Security! Nobody move!"

"Shit! Boss we gotta go!" Someone yelled as everyone began to scatter in different directions.

"Mother Fucker!" He groaned, roughly pulling out of me. Like everyone else he was in a rush to get the fuck out as he quickly tried to readjust his jeans.

"Hold on!" I turned around as quickly as I could, grabbing a hold of his ankle from where I still lay on the floor. "Our deal!" I called as he struggled to get away from me and the incoming officers.

The last thing I remember is him yelling at me, "You're bat shit, man," before bringing his free foot down on the back of my head.

"Hey… Hey kid… You alright…?" I heard a distant voice call out to me. My eyes slowly opened as I began to get a hold of my bearings. I let out a groan as I sat up. My head ached and although my vision was slightly out of focus, I could tell that I was still in the warehouse. "Easy now…" I heard the voice say again.

I turned my head too fast and near fell back over once more. I caught sight of the officer questioning me and swore. "Fuck…" I groaned, rubbing my sore head while trying to cover myself with my jacket with my free hand.

"'Fuck' is right, Satellite." Trudge glared at me. "We got a whole warehouse full of unregistered Duel Disks in a district where they're banned. You wanna tell me what you're doing here?"

I was exhausted. At that point I was so tired of lying and getting hurt for nothing. I had been beaten and fucked and degraded and had absolutely nothing to show for it. I let out a sigh as he looked at me expectantly. "It is… Exactly what it looks like, Officer…" I muttered, leaning back on my palms to stare up at him.

I could tell that he was surprised that I had actually told him the truth. It took him a moment to re-plan his response when he realized I was not lying to him. "Why don't you tell me then 'what it looks like'?"

I shook my head. We both knew I had to be the one to say it. "Why don't you just arrest me? I know you've been tailing me for months. I know you want to, Trudge." I challenged him.

Neither one of said anything for a while. I rested my head in my hands. I was not sure which was making it hurt worse, my injury or the stress of the moment at hand. I heard something move that makes me look up again, and I'm surprised to see Trudge sitting across from me on the ground. "What's you're name, kid?" He asked and I rolled my eyes in response.

"Yusei." I responded, wondering why he was trying to be nice to me.

He nodded for a moment. He seemed pleased with how cooperative I was being. I could not care less. "Why do you do this to yourself, Yusei?" He asked calmly. "What do you gain from…this?" He continued, motioning to my barely covered body.

I bit at my bottom lip for a moment. I knew that if I continued on my path of honesty, I would give him enough to get me thrown in The Facility. "I spent all my money on parts to… build a motorcycle."

"A motorcycle?" He repeated incredulously.

He did not try to correct me, so I continued. "And it was stolen… by someone close to me." I swallowed. "And… It's the only way I can afford parts to build a new one… So… I can find him…"

Trudge nodded at my story, thinking it over carefully. "What are you going to do when you find him?"

I blinked. Surprised that the question took me off guard. I had been so focused on getting to Jack I had not even considered what I would do once I found him. "I… He… He took more from me than just the bike…" I started just as Trudge began to laugh.

"You mean to tell me you went through all of this trouble and you don't know what you're going to do when you get there?" He chuckled, shaking his head at my expense. I buried my face in my hands once more, this time from sheer embarrassment. I heard his laugh trail off and soon after I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder. He waited for me to look back up before he continued. "Listen, Yusei. We all have to make choices in our life. And sometimes we're put in a position where those choices have less than desirable outcomes." He squeezed me shoulder as he continued. "But that doesn't mean that we can't be held accountable for the choices we make. You need to realize that every choice you make has an outcome that you're gonna have to own up to. And you have to make sure that you can live with those outcomes. I'm sure… At the time you thought that this… That you do was the right thing for you. But it's not. And I think you're smart enough to realize that." He flashed me a smile that I did not return. "Can I trust you to make better choices in the future?"

I pulled back, jerking my shoulder out of his grip. "If you have to ask then you clearly don't trust me." I muttered. "So why don't you just cover your ass and arrest me now?" I asked him, not sharing his optimism that I could actually stop the path I was on.

He gave me a shrug and rose to his feet. "On what charge, Yusei?" He asked me with a feigned seriousness. "This warehouse is technically private property, so if the owner consented to you having sex in it, that's really none of my business…" He flashed me a smile before turning to leave. "Just try to stay out of trouble, okay?"

I rose to my feet, quickly struggling to get inside my jeans not too far away. "Are you sure that's a good choice on your part, Trudge?" I called out to him as he approached a few other lingering officers. He did not acknowledge me and I couldn't hear what he said to them, but it was not long after that the rest of Security vacated the building.

Sector Security cleaned out the warehouse of all dueling contraband. They took everything back to their headquarters for inventory and left the warehouse completely empty.

Except for one Duel Disk that seemed to be conveniently left behind in the raid.

Six months later, I was arrested. Not for prostitution, surprisingly enough but for entering New Domino City without a permit, owning an illegal Duel Runner, and dueling illegally. I was marked as a criminal and I spent a month in The Facility.

Upon my release, I learned that Officer Trudge had been demoted in Security for allowing me to enter New Domino City in the first place.

I often wonder if he feels any remorse for the decision he made to not arrest me when he had the chance. I wonder which one of us he was trying to give advice to that night.

I know I've made a lot of less than desirable choices in my life. But I also know how far I've come and how strong those choices have made me.

And that strength I think I can live with.


End file.
